Show or hide formatting marks

Formatting marks like dots (…) for spaces or arrows (→) for tab characters are used in Word to show the text layouts of documents. You might find these formatting marks useful when you're designing content with a specific look in mind.

Formatting marks are a set of symbols that provide a visual representation of specific formatting in a document.

Tab charactersDisplay tab characters as arrows.

SpacesDisplay spaces between words as dots.

Paragraph marksDisplay the ends of paragraphs with the paragraph symbol.

Hidden textDisplay a dotted line under text that is formatted as hidden.

Optional hyphensDisplay hyphens that indicate where to divide a word at the end of a line. Optional hyphens are not printed unless a word actually breaks at the end of a line. When a word breaks at the end of the line, the optional hyphen is printed as a regular hyphen.

Object anchorsDisplay object anchors, which indicate that an object is attached to a specific paragraph.

Optional breaksControl where a word or phrase breaks if it falls at the end of a line. If you use Word with an East Asian language, this option prevents the incorrect breaking of text. This option is available only if an East Asian language is enabled for editing text.

You can choose which formatting marks always are displayed on the screen, regardless if the Show/Hide button is turned on or turned off. For example, you can display paragraphs and spaces at all times, but can hide tab characters and hidden text when Show/Hide is turned off.

Note: The background of the Show/Hide button is shaded when it's turned on.

You can clear any formatting mark you select to display on the screen at all times. Once you clear a check box for a formatting mark, that mark no longer displays on the screen at all times, regardless if the Show/Hide button is turned on or turned off